Prophets and Kings

by Ellen G. White

Chapter 59: "The House of Israel"

In proclaiming the truths of the everlasting gospel to every
nation, kindred, tongue, and people, God's church on earth today is fulfilling
the ancient prophecy, "Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of
the world with fruit." Isaiah 27:6. The followers of Jesus, in
co-operation with heavenly intelligences, are rapidly occupying the waste
places of the earth; and, as the result of their labors, an abundant fruitage
of precious souls is developing. Today, as never before, the dissemination of
Bible truth by means of a consecrated church is bringing to the sons of men the
benefits foreshadowed centuries ago in the promise to Abraham and to all
Israel,—to God's church on earth in every age,—"I will
bless thee, . . . and thou shalt be a blessing." Genesis 12:2. {PK 703.1}

This promise of blessing should have met fulfillment in
large measure during the centuries following the return of the Israelites from
the lands of their captivity. It was God's [704] design
that the whole earth be prepared for the first advent of Christ, even as today
the way is preparing for His second coming. At the end of the years of
humiliating exile, God graciously gave to His people Israel, through Zechariah,
the assurance: "I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of
Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of
the Lord of hosts the holy mountain." And of His people He said,
"Behold, . . . I will be their God, in truth and in
righteousness." Zechariah 8:3, 7, 8. {PK 703.2}

These promises were conditional on obedience. The sins that
had characterized the Israelites prior to the captivity, were not to be
repeated. "Execute true judgment," the Lord exhorted those who were
engaged in rebuilding; "and show mercy and compassions every man to his
brother: and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the
poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother." "Speak
ye every man the truth to his neighbor; execute the judgment of truth and peace
in your gates." Zechariah 7:9, 10; 8:16. {PK 704.1}

Rich were the rewards, both temporal and spiritual, promised
those who should put into practice these principles of righteousness. "The
seed shall be prosperous," the Lord declared; "the vine shall give
her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give
their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these
things. And it shall come to pass, that as ye were a curse among the heathen, O
house of Judah, and house of Israel; so I will save you, and ye shall be a
blessing." Zechariah 8:12, 13. [705]{PK 704.2}

By the Babylonish captivity the Israelites were effectually
cured of the worship of graven images. After their return, they gave much
attention to religious instruction and to the study of that which had been
written in the book of the law and in the prophets concerning the worship of
the true God. The restoration of the temple enabled them to carry out fully the
ritual services of the sanctuary. Under the leadership of Zerubbabel, of Ezra,
and of Nehemiah they repeatedly covenanted to keep all the commandments and
ordinances of Jehovah. The seasons of prosperity that followed gave ample
evidence of God's willingness to accept and forgive, and yet with fatal
shortsightedness they turned again and again from their glorious destiny and
selfishly appropriated to themselves that which would have brought healing and
spiritual life to countless multitudes. {PK 705.1}

This failure to fulfill the divine purpose was very apparent
in Malachi's day. Sternly the Lord's messenger dealt with the evils that were
robbing Israel of temporal prosperity and spiritual power. In his rebuke
against transgressors the prophet spared neither priests nor people. "The
burden of the word of the Lord to Israel" through Malachi was that the
lessons of the past be not forgotten and that the covenant made by Jehovah with
the house of Israel be kept with fidelity. Only by heartfelt repentance could
the blessing of God be realized. "I pray you," the prophet pleaded,
"beseech God that He will be gracious unto us." Malachi 1:1, 9. {PK 705.2}

Not by any temporary failure of Israel, however, was the
plan of the ages for the redemption of mankind to be [706]
frustrated. Those to whom the prophet was speaking might not heed the message
given, but the purposes of Jehovah were nevertheless to move steadily forward
to their complete fulfillment. "From the rising of the sun even unto the
going down of the same," the Lord declared through His messenger, "My
name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be
offered unto My name, and a pure offering: for My name shall be great among the
heathen." Malachi 1:11. {PK
705.3}

The covenant of "life and peace" God had made with
the sons of Levi—the covenant which, if kept, would have brought
untold blessing—the Lord now offered to renew with those who once had
been spiritual leaders, but who through transgression had become
"contemptible and base before all the people." Malachi 2:5, 9. {PK 706.1}

Solemnly evildoers were warned of the day of judgment to
come and of Jehovah's purpose to visit with swift destruction every
transgressor. Yet none were left without hope; Malachi's prophecies of judgment
were accompanied by invitations to the impenitent to make their peace with God.
"Return unto Me," the Lord urged; "and I will return unto
you." Malachi 3:7. {PK
706.2}

It seems as if every heart must respond to such an
invitation. The God of heaven is pleading with His erring children to return to
Him, that they may again co-operate with Him in carrying forward His work in
the earth. The Lord holds out His hand to take the hand of Israel and to help
them to the narrow path of self-denial and [707]
self-sacrifice, to share with Him the heirship as sons of God. Will they be
entreated? Will they discern their only hope? {PK 706.3}

How sad the record, that in Malachi's day the Israelites
hesitated to yield their proud hearts in prompt and loving obedience and hearty
co-operation! Self-vindication is apparent in their response, "Wherein
shall we return?" {PK
707.1}

The Lord reveals to His people one of their special sins.
"Will a man rob God?" He asks. "Yet ye have robbed Me."
Still unconvicted of sin, the disobedient inquire, "Wherein have we robbed
Thee?" {PK 707.2}

Definite indeed is the Lord's answer: "In tithes and
offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed Me, even this whole
nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the store-house, that there may be meat in
Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not
open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall
not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your
sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your
vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts. And
all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith
the Lord of hosts." Verses 7-12. {PK 707.3}

God blesses the work of men's hands, that they may return to
Him His portion. He gives them the sunshine and the rain; He causes vegetation
to flourish; He gives health and ability to acquire means. Every blessing comes
from His bountiful hand, and He desires men and women to show their gratitude
by returning Him a portion in tithes [708] and offerings—in
thank offerings, in freewill offerings, in trespass offerings. They are to
devote their means to His service, that His vineyard may not remain a barren
waste. They are to study what the Lord would do were He in their place. They
are to take all difficult matters to Him in prayer. They are to reveal an
unselfish interest in the building up of His work in all parts of the world. {PK 707.4}

Through messages such as those borne by Malachi, the last of
the Old Testament prophets, as well as through oppression from heathen foes,
the Israelites finally learned the lesson that true prosperity depends upon
obedience to the law of God. But with many of the people, obedience was not the
outflow of faith and love. Their motives were selfish. Outward service was
rendered as a means of attaining to national greatness. The chosen people did
not become the light of the world, but shut themselves away from the world as a
safeguard against being seduced into idolatry. The restrictions which God had
given, forbidding intermarriage between His people and the heathen, and
prohibiting Israel from joining in the idolatrous practices of surrounding
nations, were so perverted as to build up a wall of partition between the
Israelites and all other peoples, thus shutting from others the very blessings
which God had commissioned Israel to give to the world. {PK 708.1}

At the same time the Jews were, by their sins, separating
themselves from God. They were unable to discern the deep spiritual
significance of their symbolic service. In their self-righteousness they
trusted to their own works, to the sacrifices and ordinances themselves,
instead of relying upon [709] the merits of Him to whom all
these things pointed. Thus "going about to establish their own
righteousness" (Romans 10:3), they built themselves up in a
self-sufficient formalism. Wanting the Spirit and grace of God, they tried to
make up for the lack by a rigorous observance of religious ceremonies and
rites. Not content with the ordinances which God Himself had appointed, they
encumbered the divine commands with countless exactions of their own devising.
The greater their distance from God, the more rigorous they were in the
observance of these forms. {PK
708.2}

With all these minute and burdensome exactions it was a
practical impossibility for the people to keep the law. The great principles of
righteousness set forth in the Decalogue, and the glorious truths shadowed in
the symbolic service, were alike obscured, buried under a mass of human
tradition and enactment. Those who were really desirous of serving God, and who
tried to observe the whole law as enjoined by the priests and rulers, groaned
under a heavy burden. {PK
709.1}

As a nation, the people of Israel, while desiring the advent
of the Messiah, were so far separated from God in heart and life that they
could have no true conception of the character or mission of the promised
Redeemer. Instead of desiring redemption from sin, and the glory and peace of
holiness, their hearts were fixed upon deliverance from their national foes,
and restoration to worldly power. They looked for Messiah to come as a
conqueror, to break every yoke, and exalt Israel to dominion over all nations.
Thus Satan had succeeded in preparing the hearts of the people to [710]
reject the Saviour when He should appear. Their own pride of heart, and their
false conceptions of His character and mission, would prevent them from
honestly weighing the evidences of His Messiahship. {PK 709.2}

For more than a thousand years the Jewish people had waited
the coming of the promised Saviour. Their brightest hopes had rested upon this
event. For a thousand years, in song and prophecy, in temple rite and household
prayer, His name had been enshrined; and yet when He came, they did not
recognize Him as the Messiah for whom they had so long waited. "He came
unto His own, and His own received Him not." John 1:11. To their
world-loving hearts the Beloved of heaven was "as a root out of a dry
ground." In their eyes He had "no form nor comeliness;" they
discerned in Him no beauty that they should desire Him. Isaiah 53:2. {PK 710.1}

The whole life of Jesus of Nazareth among the Jewish people
was a reproof to their selfishness, as revealed in their unwillingness to
recognize the just claims of the Owner of the vineyard over which they had been
placed as husbandmen. They hated His example of truthfulness and piety; and
when the final test came, the test which meant obedience unto eternal life or
disobedience unto eternal death, they rejected the Holy One of Israel and
became responsible for His crucifixion on Calvary's cross. {PK 710.2}

In the parable of the vineyard, Christ near the close of His
earthly ministry called the attention of the Jewish teachers to the rich
blessings bestowed upon Israel, and in these showed God's claim to their
obedience. Plainly He set [711] before them the glory of God's
purpose, which through obedience they might have fulfilled. Withdrawing the
veil from the future, He showed how, by failure to fulfill His purpose, the
whole nation was forfeiting His blessing and bringing ruin upon itself. {PK 710.3}

"There was a certain householder," Christ said,
"which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a wine
press in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a
far country." Matthew 21:33. {PK 711.1}

Thus the Saviour referred to "the vineyard of the Lord
of hosts," which the prophet Isaiah centuries before had declared to be
"the house of Israel." Isaiah 5:7. {PK 711.2}

"And when the time of the fruit drew near," Christ
continued, the owner of the vineyard "sent his servants to the husbandmen,
that they might receive the fruits of it. And the husbandmen took his servants,
and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another. Again, he sent other
servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise. But last of all
he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son. But when the
husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let
us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance. And they caught him, and cast
him out of the vineyard, and slew him." {PK 711.3}

Having portrayed before the priests their crowning act of
wickedness, Christ now put to them the question, "When the lord therefore
of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?" The
priests had been following the narrative with deep interest; and without
considering the relation of the subject to themselves, they joined [712]
with the people in answering, "He will miserably destroy those wicked men,
and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the
fruits in their seasons." {PK 711.4}

Unwittingly they had pronounced their own doom. Jesus looked
upon them, and under His searching gaze they knew that He read the secrets of
their hearts. His divinity flashed out before them with unmistakable power.
They saw in the husbandmen a picture of themselves, and they involuntarily
exclaimed, "God forbid!" {PK 712.1}

Solemnly and regretfully Christ asked: "Did ye never
read in the Scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is
become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in
our eyes? Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you,
and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever shall
fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will
grind him to powder." Matthew 21:34-44. {PK 712.2}

Christ would have averted the doom of the Jewish nation if
the people had received Him. But envy and jealousy made them implacable. They
determined that they would not receive Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah. They
rejected the Light of the world, and henceforth their lives were surrounded
with darkness as the darkness of midnight. The doom foretold came upon the
Jewish nation. Their own fierce passions, uncontrolled, wrought their ruin. In
their blind rage they destroyed one another. Their rebellious, stubborn pride
brought upon them the wrath of their Roman [713] conquerors.
Jerusalem was destroyed, the temple laid in ruins, and its site plowed like a
field. The children of Judah perished by the most horrible forms of death.
Millions were sold to serve as bondmen in heathen lands. {PK 712.3}

That which God purposed to do for the world through Israel,
the chosen nation, He will finally accomplish through His church on earth
today. He has "let out His vineyard [714] unto
other husbandmen," even to His covenant-keeping people, who faithfully
"render Him the fruits in their seasons." Never has the Lord been
without true representatives on this earth who have made His interests their
own. These witnesses for God are numbered among the spiritual Israel, and to
them will be fulfilled all the covenant promises made by Jehovah to His ancient
people. {PK 713.1}

Today the church of God is free to carry forward to
completion the divine plan for the salvation of a lost race. For many centuries
God's people suffered a restriction of their liberties. The preaching of the
gospel in its purity was prohibited, and the severest of penalties were visited
upon those who dared disobey the mandates of men. As a consequence, the Lord's
great moral vineyard was almost wholly unoccupied. The people were deprived of
the light of God's word. The darkness of error and superstition threatened to
blot out a knowledge of true religion. God's church on earth was as verily in
captivity during this long period of relentless persecution as were the
children of Israel held captive in Babylon during the period of the exile. {PK 714.1}

But, thank God, His church is no longer in bondage. To
spiritual Israel have been restored the privileges accorded the people of God
at the time of their deliverance from Babylon. In every part of the earth, men
and women are responding to the Heaven-sent message which John the revelator
prophesied would be proclaimed prior to the second coming of Christ: "Fear
God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come."
Revelation 14:7. [715]{PK 714.2}

No longer have the hosts of evil power to keep the church
captive; for "Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city," which
hath "made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her
fornication;" and to spiritual Israel is given the message, "Come out
of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive
not of her plagues." Verse 8; 18:4. As the captive exiles heeded the
message, "Flee out of the midst of Babylon" (Jeremiah 51:6), and were
restored to the Land of Promise, so those who fear God today are heeding the
message to withdraw from spiritual Babylon, and soon they are to stand as
trophies of divine grace in the earth made new, the heavenly Canaan. {PK 715.1}

In Malachi's day the mocking inquiry of the impenitent,
"Where is the God of judgment?" met with the solemn response:
"The Lord . . . shall suddenly come to His temple, even the
Messenger of the covenant. . . . But who may abide the day of His
coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner's fire,
and like fullers' soap: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver:
and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that
they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. Then shall the
offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of
old, and as in former years." Malachi 2:17; 3:1-4. {PK 715.2}

When the promised Messiah was about to appear, the message
of the forerunner of Christ was: Repent, publicans and sinners; repent,
Pharisees and Sadducees; "for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Matthew 3:2. [716]{PK 715.3}

Today, in the spirit and power of Elias and of John the
Baptist, messengers of God's appointment are calling the attention of a
judgment-bound world to the solemn events soon to take place in connection with
the closing hours of probation and the appearance of Christ Jesus as King of
kings and Lord of lords. Soon every man is to be judged for the deeds done in
the body. The hour of God's judgment has come, and upon the members of His
church on earth rests the solemn responsibility of giving warning to those who
are standing as it were on the very brink of eternal ruin. To every human being
in the wide world who will give heed must be made plain the principles at stake
in the great controversy being waged, principles upon which hang the destinies
of all mankind. {PK 716.1}

In these final hours of probation for the sons of men, when
the fate of every soul is so soon to be decided forever, the Lord of heaven and
earth expects His church to arouse to action as never before. Those who have
been made free in Christ through a knowledge of precious truth, are regarded by
the Lord Jesus as His chosen ones, favored above all other people on the face
of the earth; and He is counting on them to show forth the praises of Him who
hath called them out of darkness into marvelous light. The blessings which are
so liberally bestowed are to be communicated to others. The good news of
salvation is to go to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. {PK 716.2}

In the visions of the prophets of old the Lord of glory was
represented as bestowing special light upon His church [717] in the
days of darkness and unbelief preceding His second coming. As the Sun of
Righteousness, He was to arise upon His church, "with healing in His
wings." Malachi 4:2. And from every true disciple was to be diffused an
influence for life, courage, helpfulness, and true healing. {PK 716.3}

The coming of Christ will take place in the darkest period
of this earth's history. The days of Noah and of Lot picture the condition of
the world just before the coming of the Son of man. The Scriptures, pointing
forward to this time, declare that Satan will work with all power and
"with all deceivableness of unrighteousness." 2 Thessalonians 2:9,
10. His working is plainly revealed by the rapidly increasing darkness, the
multitudinous errors, heresies, and delusions of these last days. Not only is
Satan leading the world captive, but his deceptions are leavening the professed
churches of our Lord Jesus Christ. The great apostasy will develop into
darkness deep as midnight. To God's people it will be a night of trial, a night
of weeping, a night of persecution for the truth's sake. But out of that night
of darkness God's light will shine. {PK 717.1}

He causes "the light to shine out of darkness." 2
Corinthians 4:6. When "the earth was without form, and void; and darkness
was upon the face of the deep," "the Spirit of God moved upon the
face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was
light." Genesis 1:2, 3. So in the night of spiritual darkness, God's word
goes forth, "Let there be light." To His people He says, "Arise,
shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon
thee." Isaiah 60:1. [718]{PK 717.2}

"Behold," says the Scripture, "the darkness
shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise
upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee." Verse 2. Christ, the
outshining of the Father's glory, came to the world as its light. He came to represent
God to men, and of Him it is written that He was anointed "with the Holy
Ghost and with power," and "went about doing good." Acts 10:38.
In the synagogue at Nazareth He said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath sent Me
to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and
recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to
preach the acceptable year of the Lord." Luke 4:18, 19. This was the work
He commissioned His disciples to do. "Ye are the light of the world,"
He said. "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Matthew 5:14, 16. {PK 718.1}

This is the work which the prophet Isaiah describes when he
says: "Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the
poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover
him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light
break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and
thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy
rearward." Isaiah 58:7, 8. {PK 718.2}

Thus in the night of spiritual darkness God's glory is to
shine forth through His church in lifting up the bowed down and comforting
those that mourn. [719]{PK 718.3}

All around us are heard the wails of a world's sorrow. On
every hand are the needy and distressed. It is ours to aid in relieving and
softening life's hardships and misery. The wants of the soul only the love of
Christ can satisfy. If Christ is abiding in us, our hearts will be full of
divine sympathy. The sealed fountains of earnest, Christlike love will be
unsealed. {PK 719.1}

There are many from whom hope has departed. Bring back the
sunshine to them. Many have lost their courage. Speak to them words of cheer.
Pray for them. There are those who need the bread of life. Read to them from
the word of God. Upon many is a soul sickness which no earthly balm can reach
nor physician heal. Pray for these souls. Bring them to Jesus. Tell them that
there is a balm in Gilead and a Physician there. {PK 719.2}

Light is a blessing, a universal blessing, pouring forth its
treasures on a world unthankful, unholy, demoralized. So it is with the light
of the Sun of Righteousness. The whole earth, wrapped as it is in the darkness
of sin and sorrow and pain, is to be lighted with the knowledge of God's love.
From no sect, rank, or class of people is the light shining from heaven's
throne to be excluded. {PK
719.3}

The message of hope and mercy is to be carried to the ends
of the earth. Whosoever will, may reach forth and take hold of God's strength
and make peace with Him, and he shall make peace. No longer are the heathen to
be wrapped in midnight darkness. The gloom is to disappear before the bright
beams of the Sun of Righteousness. [720]{PK 719.4}

Christ has made every provision that His church shall be a
transformed body, illumined with the Light of the world, possessing the glory
of Immanuel. It is His purpose that every Christian shall be surrounded with a
spiritual atmosphere of light and peace. He desires that we shall reveal His
own joy in our lives. {PK
720.1}

"Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of
the Lord is risen upon thee." Isaiah 60:1. Christ is coming with power and
great glory. He is coming with His own glory and with the glory of the Father.
And the holy angels will attend Him on His way. While all the world is plunged
in darkness, there will be light in every dwelling of the saints. They will
catch the first light of His second appearing. The unsullied light will shine
from His splendor, and Christ the Redeemer will be admired by all who have
served Him. While the wicked flee, Christ's followers will rejoice in His
presence. {PK 720.2}

Then it is that the redeemed from among men will receive
their promised inheritance. Thus God's purpose for Israel will meet with
literal fulfillment. That which God purposes, man is powerless to disannul.
Even amid the working of evil, God's purposes have been moving steadily forward
to their accomplishment. It was thus with the house of Israel throughout the
history of the divided monarchy; it is thus with spiritual Israel today. {PK 720.3}

The seer of Patmos, looking down through the ages to the
time of this restoration of Israel in the earth made new, testified: {PK 720.4}

"I beheld, and lo, a great multitude, which no man
could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and [721]
tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white
robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation
to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. {PK 720.5}

"And all the angels stood round about the throne, and
about the elders and the four beasts ["living creatures," R.V.], and
fell before the throne on their faces, and worshiped God, saying, Amen:
Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor, and power, and
might, be unto our God forever and ever." {PK 721.1}

"And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude,
and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings,
saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and
rejoice, and give honor to Him." "He is Lord of lords, and King of
kings: and they that are with Him are called, and chosen, and faithful."
Revelation 7:9-12; 19:6, 7; Revelation 17:14. {PK 721.2}